Having vetoed only P26.065 billion from the P288-billion “congressional insertions”, mostly in the bicameral conference, the budget for education is still not “assigned the highest budgetary priority” contrary to Article XIV Sec 5(5) of the 1987 Constitution.
That being said, Malacañang may already be preparing for any constitutional challenge that may arise from this – both before the Supreme Court and the court of public opinion.
Related: On the Slash in the DepEd’s Budget
The Enrolled Bill as submitted by Congress had total appropriations of P913 billion for the entire education sector namely, DepEd, TESDA, SUCs and CHED. Would the good DBM secretary care to clarify where the difference of P137 billion came from if her figure is P1.05 trillion?
Unprogrammed Fund is a standby fund that only the president is authorized to release to augment certain items under the Regular Budget, subject to defined limitations. Vetoing line items under the UF may be superfluous, if not an overkill.
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